


oh glory, i think i see you ‘round the bend

by oldpapertowns



Series: chemical christmas 2020 [23]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Classical Musicians, Ficlet, Gen, M/M, chemical christmas, violin prodigy!azula
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:47:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28276335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oldpapertowns/pseuds/oldpapertowns
Summary: Zuko gets asked to join Aang’s quartet a day after the concert. He accepts, of course.A week after that, Ty Lee informs the quartet group chat that they’ve been enrolled in a competition.
Relationships: Sokka/Zuko
Series: chemical christmas 2020 [23]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2036416
Comments: 8
Kudos: 62





	oh glory, i think i see you ‘round the bend

**Author's Note:**

> day 23 of chemical christmas - glory! prompt list by @saintmichale_ on instagram
> 
> title from ‘oh glory’ by p*nic! at the disco
> 
> wow okay back by popular demand you guys really liked classical musician atla so here we are ! if you’ve been reading my chemical christmas series (thank you!!!) this has been posted way later than the rest but im getting invested in this universe which means taking more time to write these rip
> 
> it’s probably best if you read part 1 but other than that happy reading!!

Zuko gets asked to join Aang’s quartet a day after the concert. He accepts, of course.

A week after that, Ty Lee informs the quartet group chat that they’ve been signed up for a competition that they’ll spend the next semester preparing for.

[mozart sux - 4 people]

Zuko: we have been WHAT??????

Ty Lee: Enrolled in a competition! Isn’t that exciting?

Zuko: quite frankly, NO.

Sokka: Aw babe loosen up! Relax! ;)   
Sokka: The ;) means you should make out with me

Zuko: oh for the love of-   
Zuko: not NOW

Sokka: Rain check?

Zuko: sure, whatever, fine   
Zuko: i’m more interested in the FUCKING COMPETITION that we were signed up for without ANY NOTICE   
Zuko: TY LEE. WHY.

Ty Lee: In my defense, I’m just the person who’s passing on the information.   
Ty Lee: I heard it from Mai, who heard it from Azula, who heard it from Iroh, who doesn’t know that Azula knows. Except he probably does, because he’s Iroh.

Zuko: does everyone in my family except for me know   
Zuko: i fucking hate it here

Ty Lee: I mean, Azula’s Azula. That kind of information is bound to reach her.   
Ty Lee: By the way, she’s also participating in the competition!

Zuko: what the fuck.   
Zuko: okay, no, nope, FUCK no i’m out   
Zuko: i am not competing against my prodigy sister

Ty Lee: She’s competing as a solo violinist, dummy. We’re competing as a chamber group!

Zuko: that’s really not much better.

Sokka: Think of it this way: we get to spend so much more time together!!!

Aang: Sokka, you’re not even in the house half the time because you’re over at Zuko’s   
Aang: And this competition sounds fun! We should do it!

Zuko: we ARE doing this, because apparently we don’t have a choice

Sokka: We can always just not, though

Zuko: no, we’re doing this.

Ty Lee: Have I ever mentioned that Zuko is extremely competitive?

Aang: ...No

Ty Lee: Well, he is! Get ready for a bunch of daily practices, because we’re either going to win this competition or die trying.

Sokka: Wtf did i just sign up for   
Sokka: Daily practices??? My bf is crazy

Ty Lee: Oops!

Zuko: you guys asked to have me in your quartet.   
Zuko: we are winning this competition.

  
  


They choose Tchaikovsky’s Quartet No. 1, first movement at Zuko’s insistence.

By the time the competition arrives, they’ve had a shit ton of rehearsals and everyone thinks their quartet has been polished to near perfection.

Well, everyone except for Zuko. He’s pacing around the corner of the dressing room filled with competitors, fairly vibrating with nervous energy.

“Zuko,” says Ty Lee from where she’s upside down. “We’re going to do fine.”

“There’s always something to improve on,” Zuko grits out, turning on his heel and pacing the other way. “Thinking the piece is perfect and not doing anything more is how people lose.”

“Yeah, but baby-” Sokka reaches an arm out and snags Zuko around the waist, forcing him to sit on his lap. “We know it’s not perfect.”

“Great pep talk,” Zuko mutters, relaxing the tiniest bit in Sokka’s arms.

“What I’m  _ trying _ to say,” Sokka continues after poking Zuko’s arm. “Is that even though it’s not perfect, we can try our best. And our best is pretty damn good because of all those practices. I’m willing to bet it’s better than most, if not all of these groups here.” He smiles, relieved, when Zuko relaxes more after that statement.

Aang comes hurrying back to them before Zuko can answer. “Someone named Azula is onstage. She’s really good!”

Zuko stiffens again. “That’s my sister.”

He slithers out of Sokka’s arms and makes his way towards the door. The rest of the ensemble catches up to him in the wings and presses against him. The violinist - Azula, if what Aang said is correct - is somewhat visible onstage in an elegant bright red sleeveless dress. She’s playing a series of octaves perfectly in tune, then upon finishing the octaves, makes her way into a double stop sequence. Which are also, of course, perfectly in tune.

Everyone, including Sokka, is enchanted by her skill. The concert hall itself seems to be holding its breath as Azula proceeds to move out of the cadenza and into the final section, every bow stroke impeccable.

All too soon, Azula is finished with her piece and is met with deafening applause. She bows, then walks off the stage and straight towards Sokka’s ensemble. Sokka gulps, scared of her sheer talent, but Azula just nods at Ty Lee’s praise and looks at Zuko, unimpressed.

“Loosen up, Zuzu. Your vibrato will sound absolutely horrible if you stay that tense.”

Then she click-clacks away, leaving the quartet to stare at the rhinestones shimmering on the back of her doubtlessly very expensive dress.

“Well,” says Aang eventually. “I’m really glad we’re not competing against her.”

  
  


The self-named Atysoz Quartet, once onstage, forget everything but the piece they’ve rehearsed for literal hundreds of hours.

And a week later, the Atysoz Quartet finds out that they’ve won the competition for chamber groups.

[mozart sux - 4 people]

Sokka: YOOOOOOOO FUCK YEAH WE FUCKING WON   
Sokka: I LOVE YOU GUYS WE’RE KEEPING THIS QUARTET FOREVER

Ty Lee: I’m not opposed to that, to be honest.

Aang: Who won soloist?

Zuko: azula. obviously.

Aang: Hey apparently Toph came in second!

Sokka: Oh boy shes gonna be PISSED abt that she wanted to win so bad

Zuko: i’m glad we won. thank you guys for putting in the effort 🖤

Sokka: <33!

Ty Lee: 💖!

Aang: 💛!!

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr! (warning: sideblog)
> 
> this performance of tchaik’s quartet 1 is a good one. the 4th movement is at 23:08 but the whole thing is very nice  
> the quartet is named atysoz bc a - aang, ty - ty lee, s - sokka, z - zuko. this is also how quite a few quartets name themselves
> 
> for non-musicians:  
> » octaves are notoriously hard to get in tune no matter what string instrument you’re on - they’re a perfect interval, which means it’s super easy to hear if it’s out of tune. and playing an entire SERIES of octaves in tune??? yea NAW that’s a shit ton of practicing.  
> » double stops are when you play two notes at once, and playing two notes at once just means you have to put in twice the effort to make sure that 1. the notes themselves are in tune and 2. the intervals are in tune (the notes have to be in tune when compared to each other)  
> » the cadenza is a lil solo doodad at the end of the piece - back in the olden days the soloist would make one up on the spot but as of today most big pieces have a prewritten one. tho since azula is canonically a firebending prodigy we can make her a violin prodigy and have her improvise her cadenza


End file.
